Bloodstained Rose 2: Rise of the Blood Rose Clan
by KisandraWesker
Summary: YAY! ME GOT THE SEQUEL UP! *does a happy dance* Three years after the werewolf-vampire war, Lexi, Sephiroth, and Cloud are about to discover... that they're not alone... SephXCloud/LexiXRufus/ShaluaXVincent/RossoXAzul *I know this pairing's crazy!* R&R!
1. A Bad Feeling

Blood-stained Rose 2:

Rise of the Blood Rose Clan

Three years after the werewolf-vampire war, Lexi and the gang finally settle down. Little do they know… Lexi, Sephiroth and Cloud are not the only vampires on Gaia…

-------------------

A bad feeling

Sergeant Lexi Rhapsodos laid on her bed in her standard SOLDIER bedroom, finally getting the relaxation she needed. She also was trying to calm down from another thing… Rufus ShinRa, president of ShinRa Inc., proposed to her! Of course, she couldn't say no. She looked to the mythril cut ring and smiled. Just looking at it gave her butterflies. There was a knock at her door and in came Lieutenant Korai Yashimi, her roommate.

"Whatcha doin' here all by yourself?" she asked.

"Just relaxing… finally," she sighed at the end.

"I know. The stress of fighting werewolves and accepting the president's proposal is a lot to take in. And like the war, it works out to a good ending," Korai said, hanging her coat on the back of their door.

"Yea… I'm just glad the war's over…" Lexi said, resting her hands at the back of her head.

"But… we lost…" Korai stopped before she could say Angeal, but Lexi caught it and nodded sadly.

"I wish I could've stayed with him," she muttered.

"Lexi, you can't save everyone. You got to accept that. You've been saying that everyday! I hate to be rude, but it's getting annoying," Korai pointed out.

Lexi shot her an annoyed look, but softened as she stared up at the ceiling. Every night, her dreams were filled with nothing but Angeal. She loved him like a big brother… and she kept feeling she let him down. But Korai was right. She needed to stop this moping. Angeal died for them and she didn't let it go in vain. That was final. Lexi looked at her watch and it read 12:30 p.m. Lunch time, but not the kind of lunch regular humans got. She got up from her bed and grabbed her coat. She put it on and she was out the door, heading for Sephiroth's room, which was now his and Cloud's room. She hoped that she wouldn't catch them doing something…ahem…nasty to each other.

She took the elevator upstairs until it reached the top floor… Sephiroth's floor. She went up to the door and put an ear to it. It was quiet, so that meant Sephiroth was working and Cloud was sleeping. She knocked thrice and heard a muffled permission to come in. She opened the door and there was the silver haired vampire General, completing his last paper and Cloud was sitting on the couch, waiting on his boyfriend to finish.

"Hello, Lexi… or should I say future Mrs. ShinRa," Sephiroth said with a smirk.

"Whatever. Just finish and let's go," Lexi said, slightly annoyed.

Sephiroth shrugged and finished up.

"Ok, Cloud. Let's head out," he said, grabbing his black coat.

"About time, Seph!" Cloud said, grabbing his and following Sephiroth and Lexi.

They went to the garage and Sephiroth and Lexi grabbed their bikes and started their engines. Cloud jumped on behind Sephiroth and wrapped his arms around his waist.

"How about this: whoever gets the most victims without getting caught wins. You game?" Sephiroth asked.

"I'm game," Lexi replied with a smirk, revving her engine.

"Me, too," Cloud said.

They released their brakes and off they went into the streets of Junon. Lexi went one way and Sephiroth and Cloud went the other. Lexi zipped through the streets, steering with ease. Her first victim was spotted trying to rape a woman in an alley. Lexi glared and stopped her bike. She jumped off and with inhuman speed, she tackled him to the ground.

"RUN!" she shouted to the woman.

The woman ran while Lexi prepared to bite him. The man struggled, but she flipped him facedown and sank her teeth into his neck. He choked on his own blood until he breathed no more. She stood and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. She walked back to her bike and took off once more. Little did she know… the woman was watching her… with crimson eyes!

With Cloud and Sephiroth, they were chasing three thieves down a back street on their bike while the thieves drove a stolen car. The first fired at them while the second steered. Cloud was blocking the shots while Sephiroth tried to get close.

"Dang it! They're firing too much!" Cloud pointed out.

"Then I guess we'll have to cut them off. Hang on!" Sephiroth said, swerving down another street, parallel to the first.

The thieves, thinking they're home free, started to celebrate. Sephiroth saw his chance and swerved up next to them.

"Shoot him!" shouted the third.

The first thief loaded his gun and before he could fire it, Sephiroth swiped off his hand, making the thief scream in agony. Blood flew out the window as the car sped up. The scent of it made Sephiroth speed up and came up to the bumper.

"Cloud, shut 'em down!" he barked.

"They're as good as dead!" Cloud said, jumping off and landing on the trunk.

"Shake him off!" screamed the second thief.

Cloud dug his claws into the trunk so he wouldn't fall off. He slowly began to crawl up and got to the top. Using his claws like can openers, he cut off the top, revealing the three thieves. The first was using the third jacket like a tourniquet while driving. Cloud grabbed the injured one and yanked him out, causing the car to go out of control. It crashed into an abandoned building, leaving the other two nearly killed. Cloud held the first thief while Sephiroth pulled up and stopped feet from them. He kicked down the kickstand and made his way over, his second stage marks appearing, along with his all crimson eyes.

Cloud handed the thief to Sephiroth, who grabbed him by the neck, bloodlust in his eyes.

"You know… you gave us quite the run around. Now… it's feeding time," Sephiroth hissed, showing his fangs.

In a flash, his fangs were in and the thief slowly stilled until he went limp. While Sephiroth fed, Cloud went over to the other two and feed from them. After satisfying their thirst, they climbed back on Sephiroth's bike and they were off. So the score was:

Sephiroth:1

Lexi:1

Cloud:2

With Lexi, she sped through town, looking for her next victim when she saw Rufus in the window of his second office. She stopped and parked her bike near the one story building. She spread her wings and flew up to his window. She tapped on his window, getting his attention. At first, he was surprised, then he smiled. He went over and opened the window, letting his fiancée in.

"What are you doing here? This is an awfully big surprise," Rufus said.

"What? Can't I see my boyfriend?" she teased with a smirk.

The two laughed.

"So what brings you into town? I thought you were getting some relaxation," he asked.

"Sephiroth, Cloud and I are on lunch break… and you know what I mean," she replied hintfully.

"Oh… you guys having a race because I saw you and Sephiroth racing through," Rufus pointed out.

"We're racing to see who can get the most victims without getting busted," she said nonchalantly.

"I see… who's winning?" Rufus asked.

"Dunno and don't care. I just want to get a few meals before heading back to the base," she replied.

"Ok… well… I was just working on a project, but I'm glad you dropped by and—"

"Yo! Who you talkin' to?" came Reno's muffled voice.

"Uh oh… you better get out of here before Reno sees ya" then he called to Reno. "NO ONE!"

"See ya," she said, kissing him before jumping out, landing on her bike and taking off. Rufus shut the window and went back to work. She checked her watch and it read 12:50 p.m. Ten more minutes. After finding four more meals, she met up with Sephiroth and Cloud.

"How many, Lex?" Cloud asked.

"I got five. Seph?" she asked.

"Four. Cloud?" Sephiroth replied.

"I got only two," he replied.

"Looks like I win… AGAIN," she said with a smirk.

"You got lucky. Anyways, we better head back," Sephiroth said, revving up his bike.

Within minutes, they were gone. Once back at the base, Lexi washed up for her job as Sephiroth's aid with battle training. Once in awhile, they would fight and nine times out of ten, she would win. After washing off, she got into her SOLDIER garb and tied her sword around her waist. She met Sephiroth in the main lobby and they headed to the field. The thirty rookies that were there stood an attention immediately when they arrived, weapons in hand. Sephiroth cleared his throat before speaking.

"Welcome to your first week of battle training. Some of you will succeed… most of you will be gone," he said with a glare, making the soldiers gulp and eyes widened in fear.

Lexi snickered at their reactions. Using their mental connection she said

"This is too much fun."

_Indeed _he replied back with a smirk.

"Alright. Today, you will practicing your defense. Your partner will be attacking while you defend. When I shout switch, you will swap roles so you will be attacking while they defend. Is that clear?" he said.

"YES, SIR!" they said in unison.

"Good. BEGIN!" he barked.

They quickly found partners and began while Lexi and Sephiroth stood back and watched. While they talked, they didn't see a sword being knocked into the air until Cloud, who was just coming out, shouted out

"LOOK OUT!"

They turned and Sephiroth didn't have time to react, but Cloud somehow reached him and took the sword into his shoulder, making him scream in agony.

"CLOUD!" Sephiroth and Lexi screamed, rushing to him.

Cloud gripped the sword by the blade and yanked it out, cutting his hand a little. Sephiroth knelt next to him and casted Cure3 on his wounds, leaving only a stained hole on his shirt. Sephiroth then turned to the group of now petrified rookies, who stopped when they heard Cloud scream, glaring daggers. If looks killed, they would all be dead by now. However, his rage was ready to boil over. No one hurts his Cloud and gets away with it!

"Who did this!?" he barked.

Lexi knew to stay away from Sephiroth when he was ticked. Cloud slowly got up, rubbing his shoulder.

"I said WHO DID THIS!?" Sephiroth screamed, feeling his second stage coming.

"Uh oh… Cloud, back away," Lexi said.

Cloud nodded and went to Lexi while Sephiroth's features slowly appeared. Finally, one voice piped up.

"It was Blair, sir!" said one of the soldiers.

Sephiroth's rage calmed and he turned to Blair, still angry.

"See me after dinner," he hissed.

Blair seemed unphased for he nodded. Sephiroth dismissed the class and wrapping an arm around Cloud, he took him inside with Lexi following.

"Why wasn't Blair scared of you?" Cloud asked.

"I don't know, but there was something about his scent that doesn't seem right," Sephiroth said solemnly.

"Now that you mention it, something doesn't feel right about him. It was almost… undead," Lexi pointed out.

"I'm meeting with him after dinner. Lexi, Cloud, I need you with me just in case my feeling's right… and we're not alone," Sephiroth said.

They nodded. At dinner, Cloud, Lexi and Sephiroth together at the staff table, eating their dinner. Lexi and Sephiroth only had a salad while Cloud had a medium well steak. During dinner, Lexi kept seeing Blair giving glances at them.

"He keeps staring at us," she whispered to Sephiroth, who was reading a war novel.

"Just pretend you don't notice," he whispered back.

She nodded and they continued to eat. Sephiroth marked his page and now focused on finishing his caesar salad. While Lexi went to take another bite of her salad, she spotted Blair getting up and leaving.

"He's bailing. Permission to tail him?" Lexi asked.

"Granted. See what he's up to and report to me as soon as you can with this," Sephiroth replied, giving her a tiny microphone that she stuck to the inside of her collar.

Lexi nodded and gave Zack the rest of her salad before following the 2nd Class soldier. While Blair headed to his room, Lexi was followed him while sticking to the shadows. Blair found his room and went inside.

"He's inside his room," she whispered into the mic.

_Ok. Just stay put until he comes out _came the General's reply.

"Roger."

Lexi peeked around the corner and waited. Ten minutes later, Blair came back out… with lips slightly bloody! Lexi's eyes widened.

"Seph… I think your feeling was right. His lips are covered in blood… and I think I see… fangs!" she whispered.

_I knew it. Go to my office and wait for me there _said Sephiroth.

"Got it," she said before hurrying off.

* * *

Blair's a vampire?! How will Sephiroth expose it?

Review and find out!


	2. Not Alone

Ch 2

Turns out that Blair's also a vampire! Why is he here?

* * *

Not alone

Lexi waited for Sephiroth in his office. She heard footsteps and as the door opened, she unsheathed her blade and swung, only to blocked by the Masamune.

"Sorry… had to be sure," she said, sheathing her sword.

"I understand. You said Blair had fangs and bloody lips, correct?" Sephiroth asked.

"Yea. I guess your instincts were right. I guess all we gotta do is wait, right?" Lexi replied.

"Yes. And if I'm right again… we're not the only ones on Gaia," Sephiroth said.

"When's he getting here anyway?" Cloud asked.

"I told Zack to bring him up as soon as they're done with their classes, so it should be soon," Sephiroth replied.

Lexi sighed and sat in one of the chairs in front of Sephiroth's desk while Cloud flopped onto the couch with a sigh. At seven thirty, there was a knock at the door and Lexi and Cloud both stood, the scent of Blair hitting them. Sephiroth looked to both of them and they nodded.

"Come in," he said.

The door opened and there stood Zack, Blair behind them. Zack gestured him inside and Blair stepped inside before Zack shut the door.

"2nd Class Blair Kashina reporting for discipline, sir," he said with a salute.

Sephiroth glared.

"At ease, soldier," he said.

Blair went into parade rest, unphased by Sephiroth's glare. Lexi discreetly put a hand to her sword, but Sephiroth caught it and shook her head no. She put her hand down and nodded.

"Blair, how did your sword end up in Cloud's shoulder?" Sephiroth asked.

"It was an accident, sir. I wasn't paying attention and I let my opponent get the best of me," Blair said without hesitation.

However, Sephiroth knew he was lying, but didn't push the matter.

"You know better than to always keep your guard up, otherwise, accidents like what happened today are bound to always happen. You're lucky that it didn't kill him, otherwise… I would have to dismiss you from SOLDIER. Am I making myself clear?" he said.

"Yes, sir. Clear," Blair answered with a slight nod.

"Good. Since you're up here, I have a question: how old are you?" Sephiroth asked, fingertips together while elbows on the arm rests of his chair while leaning back.

"Twenty-two, sir. Why do you ask, sir?" Blair replied.

Sephiroth snapped his fingers and Cloud, catching onto his plan, got a bottle of what looked like red wine, and brought it over and got four glasses.

"How about a drink? Don't worry. What goes on in this, stays here, so come get a drink," Sephiroth invited, gesturing to the wine.

"Thank you, sir," Blair said, coming over.

Lexi popped the top and poured an equal amount in all four glasses.

"To SOLDIER," Sephiroth announced, raising his glass.

The three said the same thing before drinking. As Sephiroth drank, he 'accidentally' dropped his glass, which shattered on the floor. .

"Sephiroth! You ok?" Cloud asked, rushing over.

"I'm ok. Klutz…" Sephiroth murmured, bending to pick it up.

As Sephiroth picked up the pieces, a big piece of glass cut his palm, making him hiss in pain and hold his hand.

"Sephiroth, be careful!" Cloud chided.

"Sir, are you—" then, the scent of blood filled Blair's nose.

Lexi looked and saw his eyes go crimson again.

_Seph, watch out! _She called out in Sephiroth's mind.

Sephiroth got up, not bothering to heal his wound, seeing his plan was working. Blair clutched his head as he tried to stop the oncoming bloodlust. The three sensed it and it was off the charts like that of Lexi's and Sephiroth second stage.

"Cloud, run! He's too dangerous!" Lexi said.

Cloud nodded and took off while Lexi and Sephiroth unsheathed their swords.

"We need to take this outside," Sephiroth said.

"Out the window!" Lexi pointed out, busting the window with Bolt2.

The two took to the skies while Blair, now in blood rage, sprouted his own wings and flew after them.

"Here he comes!" Sephiroth shouted over the gale like winds.

Blair roared as he tore after them, claws grown out. He only focused on Sephiroth's scent from his wound and darted for him. Sephiroth saw this and put up a Barrier spell, knocking him back.

"This could be bad. Blair's power is greater than mine… I have an idea, but it's going to be risky. Do you trust me?" Sephiroth asked.

"What are you going to do?" Lexi asked with suspicion.

"…Let him catch me," he replied with a smirk.

"You're nuts! What if he—"

"He won't kill me. By the time he's done, he'll stop. I know you say it's crazy, but it's the only way to snap him out of blood rage. When you went into it, you didn't stop until you had a prey in your claws. Same thing with him," Sephiroth interrupted.

They heard Blair's roar and faced him. Sephiroth gave her a wink before flying off with Blair on his tail. Lexi only sighed.

"He's nuts," she said, rolling her eyes.

With the guys, Sephiroth flew as fast as he could, leading him outside of Junon.

"Perfect…" he thought.

Then, pretending to run out of energy, he plummeted to the ground with Blair behind him yards. The General slammed into the ground, rolling a few times before stopping. He panted heavily as he laid on the ground. Blair landed and stalked towards him. Sephiroth tried to get up, but Blair suddenly pinned him down and pushed back his silver hair, exposing his jugular.

"That's it, Blair… come drink," he thought.

Soon enough, he sank his fangs into his neck, earning a pained gasp from Sephiroth from the force of the bite. Sure enough, Blair came to his senses and saw who he bit and bolted up.

"G-G-General!!" he gasped.

Sephiroth slowly got up, clutching his bite mark.

"You know… you're the second to bite me," he chuckled.

"Wha— sir! I-I-I don't understand!" Blair stammered.

Sephiroth stood, healing his bite.

"You're not alone, Blair. You're not the only vampire in SOLDIER," he said.

"…I guess they were right," Blair said.

"Who's they?" Sephiroth asked.

"The Blood Rose Clan. That's where I grew up," Blair replied.

"Let's get back to the base first. Then, you can explain," Sephiroth said.

"Yes, sir," Blair replied.

Sephiroth shook his head.

"When we're in private with Cloud, Lexi and I, you can drop the formalities," he said with a smile.

Blair nodded, smiling. With that, they took to the skies. Suddenly, feeling weak for real, Sephiroth started to fall a little, but Blair caught him and swung his arm around his neck.

"I'm sorry. I drank too much, didn't I?" he asked, worried.

"Tell you the truth… yea, but it was the only way to snap you out of your blood rage," Sephiroth said weakly.

"Again… I'm sorry," Blair said.

"I'll be alright. I just need some rest," Sephiroth assured.

Once back at the base, Blair and Sephiroth flew through the busted window and landed on the floor.

"Seph!" Cloud cried as Sephiroth collapsed into the blonde's arms.

"Help me… get to my bed," Sephiroth said weakly.

Cloud nodded and helped his love to his bed. Lexi came in and led Blair out.

"You rather not be around here when they're together," she said.

"So I heard…" Blair said with a smirk, shutting the door.

With Cloud, he helped Sephiroth into bed and before he could do anything else, Sephiroth took him by the front of his shirt and pulled him into bed with him. Cloud smiled and kissed him. It wasn't long before shirts were off and they started nipping at each other. Cloud drew first blood, making Sephiroth moan more in pleasure than pain as the blonde licked up the General's blood that ran down.

Wanting to return the favor, Sephiroth bit him back, causing the blonde to wince, but soon relaxed as Sephiroth sucked on his neck. He stopped after satisfying his thirst. Sephiroth looked at his beautiful vampire lover and locked lips with him. Cloud ran a hand through the General's silver locks as he deepened their kiss. They parted slowly, gazing into each other's crimson eyes

"How long has it been since we been together?" Sephiroth asked.

"… I can't remember, but… it feels like it's been ages," Cloud replied with a soft smile.

Sephiroth smiled also. He wrapped his arms around his neck and drew him for another kiss. Cloud accepted without question as he deepened it once more. He slightly nipped Sephiroth's bottom lip, asking for entrance. He granted it immediately and a battle for dominance began. Sephiroth won by nipping at Cloud's tongue, causing the blonde to yelp inside and droplets of blood fell onto Sephiroth's tongue, making him want more.

Downstairs, Lexi heard everything and smiled.

"Sounds like they're having fun," she said to Korai.

"It's amazing you can hear everything. What else can you do?" Korai asked.

"Basically, my senses are heightened, letting me smell, hear and see things that no ordinary human could not. It has its other perks also," Lexi explained.

"Wow… I guess being a vampire isn't all that bad, huh?" Korai said.

"I guess you can say that," Lexi replied with a shrug before lying down on her bed.

Cloud and Sephiroth continued to make love until ten at night. Cloud laid asleep, head resting on the General's chest while Sephiroth's arms were around him. Blood spots stained the sheets, but Sephiroth didn't care. As he watched the blonde sleep, the moonlight illuminated part of his face, making him look more angelic.

"Oh Cloud… you don't know how beautiful you look in the moonlight," he whispered, brushing a stray blonde lock out of his face.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar song spell beginning to play.

_Voice in the Dark! Yami no FORIA! _

Sephiroth's eyes widened.

"Oh no! It's…!!!" he gasped.

_Shinju no kizuna ubae!_

Cloud woke up upon hearing the song and both clapped their hands over their ears.

"I thought it didn't affect us!" Cloud pointed out.

"It depends… who's singing it!" Sephiroth hissed.

_Voice in the Dark! Saa! Hajimaru _

_Utsukushiku kaeri noa SHOU!_

_Voice in the Dark! Uta ni nosete_

_Kadama suru yami no chikara!_

Sephiroth and Cloud screamed in agony as the song continued.

"Seph, it hurts!" Cloud cried out in pain.

"I know! We need to get out of here!" Sephiroth said.

But the song had already done its work and made the two weak enough so they couldn't get up. For Sephiroth, there was no choice but to fight back.

"Cloud… we have to turn the song around… we have to sing right back!" Sephiroth said weakly.

"What will that do?" Cloud asked while trying to stay strong.

"It'll turn the tables on the singer and its effect goes to them instead of us. Let's do it!" Sephiroth said, summoning a crimson mic while Cloud's was royal blue.

(Sephiroth)

_Heiwa nante maboroshi_

_Kagami ni utsuranu_

_Mayakashi!_

_Nami no ito wo karamasetara_

_Hiki ushio ni naru!_

(Cloud)

_Kokoro ni aru maryoku wo_

_ITAZURA na biyaku ni kaete!_

_Yowai mono wo madowasete yuku deshou!_

(Both)

_Voice in the Dark! Kuroi nami to! _

_Kanadeau kono MERODII!_

_Voice in the Dark! Ai wo tomete! _

_Katachi naki kusari to nare!_

_Uzumaku RIFUREIN de…_

_Shinju no kizuna ubae!_

The singers outside screeched in pain as the song bounced back to them.

"Now to finish them! Outside!" Sephiroth said, opening the window and flying to the roof with Cloud.

They caught sight of three robed figures and Sephiroth glared.

"You really think you caught us off guard? You forget that we can do the same thing, thanks to Aeris's teaching of the spell. Cloud, ready?" he asked.

"Yea!" Cloud replied with a confident nod.

"Hold it!" came Lexi's voice.

She landed between them, ruby mic in hand.

"There are three of them, so let's even things up. I called up Aeris and she's on the way. In the meanwhile, we have to hold them until she and the other girls get here," she said.

"Might as well… let's continue Voice in the Dark!" Sephiroth said.

(All three)

_Voice in the Dark! Yami no FORIA!_

_Shinju no kizuna ubae!_

_Voice in the Dark! Saa, Hajimaru _

_Utsukushiku kaeri noa SHOU!_

_Voice in the Dark! Uta ni nosete_

_Kadama suru yami no chikara!_

The robed figures clapped their hands over their ears as they sang. Meanwhile, Aeris and the other girls heard the song.

"They already started! Dang it Elena! You're so slow!" Yuffie complained.

"Me!? You're the one who needed to 'change into something fierce'!" Elena snapped back, quoting the kunoichi's exact words.

"Hold on… is that Cloud and Sephiroth singing as well?!" Yuffie exclaimed.

"It IS! Go boys!" Marlene cheered.

"Girls, we must hurry! Judging by Lexi's voice from earlier, they're powerful," Aeris said before running ahead with the rest on her heels.

(Cloud and Sephiroth)

_Heiwa nante maboroshi_

_Kagami ni utsuranu_

_Mayakashi!_

_Nami no ito wo karamasetara_

_Hiki ushio ni naru!_

_Kokoro ni aru maryoku wo_

_ITAZURA na biyaku ni kaete!_

_Yowai mono wo madowasete yuku deshou!_

(All three)

_Voice in the Dark! Kuroi nami to! _

_Kanadeau kono MERODII!_

_Voice in the Dark! Ai wo tomete! _

_Katachi naki kusari to nare!_

_Uzumaku RIFUREIN de…_

_Shinju no kizuna ubae!_

Looking at their work, Sephiroth nodded.

"They should be weak enough for us to finish off," he said, drawing his sword.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAIT!!!!" screamed Yuffie.

"We heard you guys! You sounded great!" Marlene said.

"No time for complimentaries. We need to finish the job. Aeris, start it up!" Cloud said.

_MUSA SONOROUS! YAMI NO BAROQUE! _

(All ten)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaki! _

_Yurikago de eien ni nemure!_

(Sephiroth, Cloud, Lexi, Aeris and Yuffie)

_Yukkuri to mezameteku_

_Uchinaru kokoro no kage yo_

_Shinku no BARA wo kazari _

_Shinju wo koorasete_

_Saa, tomo ni negai wo hitotsu ni shite_

_Ooinaru ankoku ni mi wo yudanete!_

The robed figures continued to scream as their energy continued to be drained away at a rapid pace.

"Let's finish it!" Lexi barked.

(Tifa, Marlene, Elena and Maria)

_Kawarihateta sekai de!_

_Unmei no morose wo shiru!_

_Ate no nai kanashimi ga!_

_Kokoro wo kudaku mae ni!_

(All ten)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaku!_

_Mirai wo mezashi tomo ni yukou!_

The robed figures had fallen to the ground, thanks to the combined voices of the ten. The song ended and they sighed with relief. The mics vanished and Sephiroth went up to them, Masamune drawn.

"Who are you and how do know the song spell? Why were you trying to hurt us?" he asked.

One of the robed figures looked up with crimson eyes as she stared down the Masamune wielder. Using the tip of his sword, he took off the robe to reveal…

"ROSSO?!?!?" Yuffie screamed.

"I thought she was killed!" Cloud exclaimed.

"Vrong… ve vere saved," she said.

"Who else is here?" Yuffie asked, taking out her big shuriken.

The others lifted their hoods to reveal Shelke, Azul and… Shalua!

"Shalua!" Yuffie cried, hugging the former researcher.

Shalua smiled before hugging Yuffie.

"We thought you were dead!" she cried again.

"I'm here now, Yuffie. Where's Vincent?" Shalua asked.

"He's still here and… he really missed you," Yuffie replied.

They got up, still a little weak from the others' song.

"Sorry. Ever since the war, we've been on high alert. I guess it was just a reflex," Lexi said with a shrug.

"A HUGE reflex," Elena added.

"Why don't we go inside?" Cloud said before heading in with Sephiroth at his side.

They nodded and in they went. After telling their tale about the war with the werewolves, Shalua was stunned, Shelke looked a little surprised and Azul was indifferent.

"Anyway, how did you guys get turned?" Yuffie asked.

Shelke took a breath before beginning.

"…All of this started after Omega's defeat. I was trying to survive, but we fell to the werewolves after I tried to defend myself. Somehow, someone saw what happened and rescued me from the inevitable. I also found out from the one that saved me that Rosso and Azul had also been turned days before. After that, I went to find Shalua. I found her still in the pod that she was placed in when Azul attacked her. Using my new ability, I brought her back. We went to find Azul and Rosso and they were at Midgar, speaking to the same vampire that saved me. He told us that we could start a new life by building up a clan and call it the Blood Rose clan. Of course, we had to agree. He was the only one that knew how to live," she said.

"Who is this 'he' you speak of?" Sephiroth asked with suspicion.

"His vame… vas Blair Yuki," Rosso replied.

* * *

Blair, leader of the Blood Rose clan?!

What the heck?!

Please review!!


	3. Shalua's and Vincent's reunion!

Ch 3

After having a meeting with Shelke, Shalua, Rosso and Azul, members of the Blood Rose clan, Sephiroth and Cloud make their way to Blair's barracks. Meanwhile, Maria and Marlene deal with some unexpected guests…

* * *

Shalua's and Vincent's reunion; Maria and Marlene's first duet!

The next day, Lexi took Shalua to Nibelheim's own ShinRa Manor. She slowly opened the door, calling for Vincent's name. Footsteps were at the top of the stairs and they stopped abruptly, followed by a short, surprised gasp as Shalua stepped from behind Lexi. Her glasses, lab coat, and mechanical arm, replaced by a real arm were gone. Her eye had healed. She was still in her outfit the day she first met him and her hair was down at her mid back.

"… Shalua…" he whispered.

"… Hi, Vincent," she said with a smile.

Unable to take it anymore, he jumped from the stairs, landing on his feet and the two embraced tightly.

"… I'm sorry…" he said.

"For what? Not saving me?" she shook her head, still smiling. "I would've gladly died that day, now that I knew that Shelke was still alive," she said.

"… Shalua…" he said, taking her into his arms once more.

Lexi quietly slipped out the door, wanting to give the two some time alone. With a sprout of her wings, she left. With Shalua and Vincent, he suddenly kissed her. Shocked at first, Shalua finally kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his waist. Vincent slowly stroked her red hair, taking in her new scent… scent of a vampire. She caught onto his as well, but didn't care.

They finally pulled away, wanting air, now gazing into each other's eyes, and rekindled friendship sparked in them, which now formed into fires of love and desire. They kissed once more while Shalua unclipped Vincent's tattered cape, letting it flutter to the ground. His gauntlet grazed down her back, making her sigh with pleasure. They broke away again and Vincent whispered into her ear…

"Let's take this to my room" which sent a shiver down her spine.

Shalua nodded and he picked her up, bridal style, earning a giggle, and carried her upstairs. They got to his room and he laid her on the bed before getting on top. He leaned down and caught her lips again. This is what Shalua and Vincent had been hoping for: to be together alone with no disturbances. Shalua ran her hands through his messy, long black hair, deepening the kiss.

Her heart fluttered a mile per minute as the kiss heated up quickly. She slipped her hands up his shirt, taking it off, showing his scarred chest where Rosso stabbed him to get the Protomateria. He nipped at her bottom lip, asking for entrance, which she granted.

Once inside, he explored inside, making her moan with pleasure. Soon, their tongues started a battle for dominance with neither side giving an inch. Finally, Vincent won by grazing his new canine teeth on her tongue, earning a surprised gasp from the former red headed researcher.

They broke away again, needing air. Seeing her chance, using her new strength, she flipped their positions and now, she was on top. She lay on his chest, eyes closed while he had an arm around her waist. A tear slipped down her chest while a smile played on her lips.

"Vincent… I'm glad that I'm alive again," she whispered.

Vincent stroked her hair with a small smile.

"… I'm glad you're back… Shalua," he said before kissing the top of her head.

Shalua nodded before drifting off to sleep from being rocked by Vincent's slow rise and fall of his chest. Vincent looked out the window.

"Lucrecia… I've found love again…" and still smiling, he said to himself

"Thank you… Lucrecia."

******

With Marlene and Maria, they walked down the streets of Junon, hand in hand.

"I guess Sephiroth's father's happy that Shalua's back, that is… if he knows," Marlene said.

"When he does find out, he'll be more than happy," Maria said.

"Hey Maria… can I tell you something?" Marlene asked.

"What's the matter?" Maria asked with concern.

The elder was silent before touching her arm with a laugh.

"TAG!" she shouted before running off.

"Get back here!" Marlene laughed.

Then, she tore after her. Maria was laughing as Marlene gave chase with a playful glare and smirk.

"You're going to pay for that!" she shouted after him.

"You gotta get me first!" Maria laughed.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, hitting Marlene in the leg, making her scream in pain.

"Where—" suddenly, two more shots zipped by them.

"Hunters! Marlene, can you get up?" Maria asked with worry.

Marlene slowly stood, wincing as she did.

"You know what it is time for?" she asked.

"Yea. Let's bring them down," Maria replied with confidence.

The hunters, which were four, came out of their hiding places, armed with handguns which contained silver nitrate bullets.

"Two little girls? I know one of them is a werewolf" The first hunter then turned to Marlene, who looked frightened. "Why are you with this filthy beast?" he asked with a glare.

Maria and Marlene stood scared for a moment before they started giggling.

"Why are you laughing?" asked one of the female hunters with suspicion.

"… You big dummies! You don't know what we can do to you. Maria, let's give that song spell Sister Aeris taught us yesterday a try," Marlene said, summoning her pink mic.

"Let's do it!" Maria replied, summoning her own, which was sky blue.

"What are you doing?!" snapped the third.

"IT'S SHOWTIME!" the girls shouted.

(Both)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaki! _

_Yurikago de eien ni nemure!_

The hunters clapped their hands over their ears as the song drifted into their minds, making them drop their weapons. Meanwhile, Sephiroth and Cloud were walking the streets when they heard the song in the air.

"It's Maria and Marlene! They must be in trouble! Come on!" Sephiroth said before taking off with Cloud on his tail.

(Maria)

_Yukkuri to mezameteku_

_Uchinaru kokoro no kage yo_

_Shinku no BARA wo kazari _

_Shinju wo koorasete_

(Marlene)

_Saa, tomo ni!_

_Negai wo hitotsu ni shite_

(Maria)

_Ooinaru!_

_Ankoku ni mi wo yudanete!_

(Both)

_Kokoro nusumu BAROKKU!_

_Mainsu no nami dakare!_

_Shinjiteita sekai wa!_

_Isshun de oto mo naku kieru!_

(Marlene)

_Yukkuri to mukatte iru_

_Owari no toki wo iwaou_

_Koori no bishou tatae _

_Shinju wo hai ni shite_

(Maria)

_Aa tomo yo!_

_Kibou no hikari areba!_

_Nijimidasu!_

_Zetsubou to iu ommaju!_

(Both)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaki! _

_Yurikago de eien ni nemure!_

_Tozasareta rakuen…_

"What's going on?! Why is my energy draining?" cried the fourth as they sank to their knees, hands still to their ears.

"That's a song spell. Sister Aeris said that it was passed down by the Ancients. They sang powerful songs to bring down their foes and even kill them if enough singers get into the song they're singing. This is one of the deadliest. This is the power of Yami no Baroque. So don't think that you can still defeat us just because you are armed with silver nitrate. Let's finish this, Maria" Marlene said with a proud smile.

"You got it, Marley!" Maria said, using her friend's nickname.

When the boys got there, they saw four hunters with hands over their ears, screaming in pain while the little werewolf and her human friend stood in the amidst of them, singing their hearts out.

(Marlene)

_Saa, tomo ni!_

_Negai wo hitotsu ni shite_

(Maria)

_Ooinaru!_

_Ankoku ni mi wo yudanete!_

"Marlene, look! It's General Sephiroth and Cloud!" Maria said suddenly with excitement.

"Are you girls alright?" Sephiroth asked.

"We're ok, but Marlene got shot in the leg with a silver bullet," Maria said with worry.

"Right now, we need to focus on helping you finish these hunters off. Cloud, let's do it," Sephiroth said, summoning his mic.

Cloud nodded and summoned his own and they joined in on the last verse.

(Boys)

_Kawarihateta sekai de!_

_Unmei no morose wo shiru!_

_Ate no nai kanashimi ga!_

_Kokoro wo kudaku mae ni!_

(Girls)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaku!_

(All four)

_Mirai wo mezashi tomo ni yukou!_

The hunters were dead by the time they were time were finished. Maria and Marlene looked at their work and suddenly squealed with delight.

"We did it! We did it! We beat them!" they exclaimed.

"Great work, girls. Nice teamwork," Sephiroth complimented.

"We did good, didn't we?" Maria asked Marlene.

"Yup!" They high fived each other. "Girl power!" Marlene replied.

"Come on, girls. Let's get home," Sephiroth said.

When Marlene started to walk, she suddenly gasped in pain as she stumbled to one knee, holding her slowly healing leg.

"The gunshot!" Maria gasped.

Sephiroth went back for her and casted Esuna, followed by Cure3, quickly healing her leg. He picked her up, bridal style, and started the walk home. On the way, seeing Marlene rubbing her leg, hoping to make to the pain go away, wanting to make her feel better, began to sing at a slow pace:

_Nanario no kaze ni fukarete tooi misaki wo_

_Mezashiteta_

_Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII_

_Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta_

_Higashi no sora he to_

_Habataku toritachi_

_Saa takarajima nukeru chikamichi_

Then, Marlene, seeing what she was trying to do, joined in.

(Both)

_Nanatsu no umi no rakuen_

_Arashi no yoru no ato ni wa _

_Ai wo tstaeru tame_

_Inochi ga mata umareru_

Sephiroth smiled at this and joined in as well, followed by Cloud.

(All four)

_Nanatsu no kuni no MERODIA_

_Daremo ga itsuka wa koko wo _

_Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo_

_Watashi wa wasurenai!_

They laughed after the song was finished. After getting back to the base, he and Aeris her to the infirmary to take a look at her injured leg. When they and the nurse cut it open, they found that the silver nitrate somehow hardened and partially blocking the blood flow. Being a werewolf, she didn't even feel her leg being cut open, but she did see the hardened nitrate. She made a disgusted face, smelling the hardened poison.

"How bad is it?" she asked.

"Luckily, it didn't block the blood flow fully, so you're good. We just to remove the silver nitrate and you're good to go. It may take us an hour or two, but you can handle it, right?" the nurse asked.

"Yup! Get right to work and don't even hesitate for a second!" Marlene replied with undaunted confidence.

Sephiroth nodded and the two went to work on her leg. Sephiroth used the weakest Fire spell he could conjure as a method to melt the nitrate before removing it. Lexi came inside in the middle of the operation and the smell of silver nitrate and Marlene's blood hit her smell hard.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Marlenegotshotbythesehunters,butwemanaged—" Maria began in a hurry.

"Maria! Slow down and say that again," Lexi said, kneeling so she was level.

"Marlene and I were playing tag outside when these four hunters came. One of them shot Marlene and they were trying to scare us, but we showed them!" Maria said, looking proud at the end.

"What happened then?" Lexi asked.

"Maria and I sang to them!" Marlene said without moving.

"You sang? What did you sing?" Lexi asked, sounding surprised.

"Yami no Baroque. Cloud and I heard them a few streets over. There had to trouble if they were singing that song, so we went there. When we did, turns out that Maria and Marlene turned the tables on them. We caught when they were ready to sing the last verses," Cloud said, sitting near one of the beds.

"Maria and Marlene sang Yami no Baroque?" Lexi asked, now sounding shocked.

"Yup! General Sephiroth and Cloud helped us at the end!" Maria said, looking proud.

Lexi giggled.

"I wish I would've been there," she said.

"You would've really really liked it!" Marlene said.

"The girls did really good for their first duet," Sephiroth said before turning back to finish the removal.

"Are you almost done?" Marlene asked.

"Just about, sweetie. Hang on a bit longer," Aeris said.

Then, the door opened again and in came Vincent, Shalua in one arm.

"Uncle Vincent!" Maria exclaimed, running to him.

Vincent kneeled and picked up the little girl.

"I heard what happened from Genesis. I'm impressed that you two handled yourselves very well against four hunters," he said.

"Thanks! I'm glad Marlene was there," Maria said with a slight blush.

"Aww! Thanks, Mari! Uncle Vincent, wanna listen?" Marlene gushed.

Vincent nodded. Maria jumped out of Vincent's arms, went to the middle of the room, summoned her mic, and then sang again while the others watched:

_Kawarihateta sekai de!_

_Unmei no morose wo shiru!_

_Ate no nai kanashimi ga!_

_Kokoro wo kudaku mae ni!_

Marlene picked it up from there without her mic, joining Maria in the middle of the room, stitching finished just in time.

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaku!_

_Mirai wo mezashi tomo ni yukou!_

With the song finished, the others applauded while the girls bowed. Suddenly, Rosso rushed in.

"BLAIR IS GONE!" she shouted.

* * *

What the?!?! Blair's missing?!

Review and find out what happened to him!


	4. The plan

Ch 4

With Blair missing, the gang decides to go look for him. One problem: where is he?

-----------------

The plan

Sephiroth held a meeting in his office the next day to search for the leader of the Blood Rose clan. He unfurled a map of Gaia and set it on the big coffee table in the middle of the room.

"We have some possible locations, all centered on big cities like Midgar" he looked around the room, counting how many people there were. In the room were Rosso, Azul, Shalua, Shelke, Vincent, Lexi, Cloud, Genesis and Rufus and himself. "Since there's an even number of us, we'll go in groups of two," he said.

"I called up Aeris and the others. They'll be here just in case something goes wrong," Lexi piped up.

"Thank you, Lexi. Now to decide groups," Sephiroth said.

"I volunteer to go with Azul," Shelke said.

"Hmph… just like back then," Azul said with a smirk, making Vincent glare at him, but chose to ignore it.

"Genesis vill be with me," Rosso said, giving him a wink. Genesis flashed a goofy smile.

Lexi shook her head.

"Oh brother…" she thought with a mental sigh.

"I'll be with Sephiroth," Cloud said, standing beside his lover, who placed a hand around his waist. No surprise there.

"I choose my fiancée, Lexi," Rufus said with a smile, making her blush.

Genesis snickered, earning a slap to the back of the head from his sister as she went to Rufus.

"That leaves Vincent and I," Shalua said.

"Ok. Now that the groups have been decided, we need to decide which groups will go to which city," Sephiroth said.

Shelke and Azul walked to the map and looked at it for a minute.

"I think we should handle Midgar. Don't you think?" she asked.

"I suggest we go to Kalm," Azul replied.

"Could we take two cities?" Shelke asked Sephiroth.

Sephiroth thought it over for a minute.

"If you split up, one won't what happened to the other if something were to occur," he pointed out.

"One thing you should know… we are former Deepground soldiers. Ve could 'andle ourselves, vight Azul?" Rosso said with a smirk.

"Exactly. Even Shelke could handle herself," Azul agreed.

"But, still they could—"

"Enough…" Shelke said suddenly.

The room grew silent.

"Indeed, I was trained in Deepground and was part of the Tsveits. There was nothing I couldn't handle. I will have to agree with Rosso and Azul when they say we could handle ourselves. So please, let Azul and I each take a city. He will take Midgar and I will do Kalm," she added.

Lexi seemed to agree.

"I've seen her fight before. She's very agile and very powerful with her EM sabers. She's also good with magic," she pointed out.

Sephiroth took Shelke's suggestion to thought. Finally, he relented.

"Alright. Shelke's group will take Kalm and Midgar," he said.

Lexi and Rufus looked at the map as Sephiroth marked out Midgar and Kalm with Shelke's and Azul's first letter initials. They looked at the possible locations left.

"What do you think, Lex?" Rufus asked.

"I think we should get… hmmm… how about—"

Suddenly, Korai burst in, out of breath.

"Sir! Rogues!" she exclaimed.

"Great… we'll settle this later! Let's go!" Lexi said, unsheathing her sword and dashing out of the room.

As they got downstairs, fifty rogue vampires were there, fighting against the soldiers, which were quickly dropping like flies. Then, they saw Maria and Marlene come in, mics in hand for they already casted the spell. They nodded to each other before they started.

(Both)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaki! _

_Yurikago de eien ni nemure!_

The rogues suddenly started screeching in agony as the song drifted in the air. Sephiroth saw most of them trying to escape.

"BLOCK THE DOORS!! DON'T LET THEM OUT!!" he screamed to the remaining soldiers.

(Maria)

_Yukkuri to mezameteku_

_Uchinaru kokoro no kage yo_

_Shinku no BARA wo kazari _

_Shinju wo koorasete_

(Marlene)

_Saa, tomo ni!_

_Negai wo hitotsu ni shite_

(Maria)

_Ooinaru!_

_Ankoku ni mi wo yudanete!_

(Both)

_Kokoro nusumu BAROKKU!_

_Mainsu no nami dakare!_

_Shinjiteita sekai wa!_

_Isshun de oto mo naku kieru!_

The others made it downstairs and Lexi, Shelke, Shalua and Rosso joined the girls. They summoned their mics and shouted in unison

"IT'S SHOWTIME!"

(Shalua and Rosso)

_Yukkuri to mukatte iru_

_Owari no toki wo iwaou_

_Koori no bishou tatae _

_Shinju wo hai ni shite_

(Lexi and Shelke)

_Aa tomo yo!_

_Kibou no hikari areba!_

_Nijimidasu!_

_Zetsubou to iu ommaju!_

(All six girls)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

_Kuroi wana no sasayaki! _

_Yurikago de eien ni nemure!_

_Tozasareta rakuen…_

The rogue vampires' screech rang out in the halls as the song continued. Most of them had fallen already while the others tried to stay strong, but it was in vain.

"Hey Cloud, let's get in a shot ourselves. How about it?" Sephiroth asked.

"Right. You ready to finish this?" Cloud agreed, summoning his mic.

"Let's do it," Sephiroth said with a smile, summoning his mic.

Azul, Genesis and Vincent protected them while they sang.

(Sephiroth and Cloud)

_Saa, tomo ni!_

_Negai wo hitotsu ni shite_

_Ooinaru!_

_Ankoku ni mi wo yudanete!_

"Hurry guys! These things are all over the place!" Genesis said, swiping at more with his claws.

The guys were literally backed against each other while the remaining rogues tried to get them, but the last verse quickly put them down.

"Everyone, together!" shouted Marlene.

(All eight)

_Kawarihateta sekai de!_

_Unmei no morose wo shiru!_

_Ate no nai kanashimi ga!_

_Kokoro wo kudaku mae ni!_

(Girls)

_Hikari tozasu BAROKKU!_

_Utsukushiki NOIZU to nare!_

(Sephiroth and Cloud)

_Kuroi wana no sasayaku!_

(All eight)

_Mirai wo mezashi tomo ni yukou!_

The rogues fell to the floor, weak enough to finish. So they did. The remaining soldiers that were alive took up the bodies and placed them in the open area. Once done, Sephiroth casted his strongest Fire spell, setting the bodies ablaze.

"Phew… we did it again!" Maria said to Marlene, who gave her a high five.

Suddenly, a rogue came out of nowhere and grabbed Maria! It sunk its fangs into her neck, making her scream in pain. Sephiroth quickly cut him down and took Maria while flinging the body into the bonfire. She clutched her neck, face contorted in agony and tears streaming down her face.

"General Sephiroth… please help me…" she pleaded through tears.

Sephiroth could only nod and he started to lap up the loose blood that came from the wound earlier.

"Maria… I need to turn you so you are immune to the rogue's bite. The bite of a rogue can turn anyone into a bloodthirsty monster. You understand, don't you?" he said softly, brushing away her tears.

She nodded, sniffling a little. Gathering his courage, he licked the spot where he was going to bite, numbing the area a little.

"This is going to hurt for a few seconds. Squeeze my hand if it hurts too much, ok?" he asked.

Maria nodded again. Licking his lips a little and baring his fangs, he gently pierced them into the same spot where the rogue bit her. She yelped in pain, squeezing his gloved hand tightly. Soon, the pain faded from her and darkness overcame her vision as blood loss took its toll on her body. Sephiroth lapped up her blood and cradled her in his arms.

"Will she be alright?" Lexi asked.

"She'll be awake by tomorrow night. For now, she needs to sleep," Sephiroth said before taking her inside.

Marlene followed him, concerned for her best friend. They went up to his office and he laid her on his couch, covering her with a black blanket that had lain on the back of it.

"Sephiroth, can I stay with her?" Marlene asked.

Sephiroth smiled softly.

"Of course you can. You two are best friends after all," he said.

Marlene nodded, and then frowned as Sephiroth walked to the window with a sad look.

"…Yea… you have yours… but… I don't have one of mine… not anymore," he added sadly, staring out to the setting sun.

Marlene, even though she was nine, knew whom he spoke of. Angeal. It was true. She liked Angeal. Heck, he treated her like a sister whenever she came to the base or he came into her neighborhood. She ran to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, the only place she could reach, silent tears running down her cheeks, but smiled.

"Angeal… he came me in one of my dreams. He said for you not to be sad anymore. He doesn't want to think about what happened to him. He said he would've gladly died for us to win the war. He wants you to go on and not dwell in the past. He stills loves you like a brother and always will," she said through her tears.

Sephiroth was shocked. Angeal said this to her to give to him? He kneeled in front of her.

"When did he say this?" he asked.

"I don't remember. But, I knew it was in one of my dreams. I was in the Lifestream and I saw Angeal coming to me. We talked for awhile and told me to say what I said to you. He basically said that he always be by your side, no matter what," Marlene said, more tears coming from her eyes.

Sephiroth smiled and hugged her while she cried into his shoulder. He closed his eyes, a single crimson tear running down his slightly pale cheek.

*******

At Rufus's second office in Junon, Lexi and Rufus were preparing for the trip.

"So, you decided on a date yet?" she asked.

"Hmm… how about somewhere in the spring?" Rufus suggested.

"That's a start," she replied with a shrug.

"YO! ANYONE HOME!?" came Reno's voice from downstairs, making them both sweatdrop.

The door suddenly flung open, scaring the living daylights out of the vampiress. The redheaded Turk bust out laughing at Lexi's expression.

"You better close that mouth! You're going to catch flies!" he laughed.

"Grrrr… RENO! That was not funny!" Lexi snapped.

Suddenly, Reno was pulled away by the back of his shirt, thanks to Elena, who gave him a whack on the head before returning to the room.

"Sorry about Reno. He's high on soda right now," she said.

"I can clearly see that," she said, getting more annoyed with Reno's non-coherent antics that were heard from the other room.

"Maybe us going to the mall was a bad idea," Elena said sheepishly, scratching the back of her head.

"Who else with you?" Lexi asked, packing in the last of her shirts.

"It was me, Reno, and Tseng. Reno said he was only going to get a small soda, but he tricked us out of the last of our money. DANG IT, RENO!" Elena shouted at the end.

"I couldn't help if I was thirsty!" Reno called back.

"You still owe us!" Elena said, shutting the door, cutting off Reno mid sentence.

She went over and helped Lexi and Rufus pack the rest of their supplies, including some Summon Materia, Command Materia, and a few of their strongest magic Materia. They zipped up the bag and Elena left. When Lexi turned around, she was met with Rufus's lips connecting to hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck while she deepened the kiss. Rufus ran a hand through her blonde locks, stroking them. They finally broke apart, a smirk playing on Lexi's lips. Then, her cell rang, making her moan while she grabbed it from the nightstand.

"Rhapsodos…" there was a pause, following by a few acknowledging nods. "Ok. We'll be in there in ten minutes tops. Bye," she said before hanging up.

"Sephiroth?" Rufus inquired.

"Yea. We still gotta discuss who's going where," Lexi replied.

"I got the stuff," Rufus said grabbing their black duffle bag before following his fiancée.

"Good luck, guys! We'll hold the fort until you guys get back," Elena said.

"We're counting on you," Lexi said with a thumbs up before they headed outside to her bike.

She revved up the engine. Once he was on, they were gone. They arrived at the base within ten minutes and went to up to Sephiroth's office to see Marlene sleeping with Maria and Sephiroth checking on Maria. He checked her pulse and found nothing. It was working. He slit one of his wrists with one of his claws and gently opened her mouth a little. He let his blood drip down inside for a minute before he closed her mouth and used Cure on his wrist.

"I used some of my blood to begin her new life. Like I said, she'll be awake by tomorrow night. However, I'm concerned for the little ones. Aeris, Yuffie and Zack are in Wutai visiting Yuffie's father in the Pagoda, so they can't arrive here in time if something were to happen while we are gone," he said to them.

"Can't one group stay behind?" asked Shalua.

"That is a possibility," Sephiroth replied.

"But, what if one group isn't enough? What if more rogues come?" asked Genesis.

"Zhen, zhe strongest group will 'ave to remain 'ere," Rosso pointed.

"Then, Cloud and Sephiroth will have to stay and call us if there's any trouble while we're away," Vincent said.

Cloud frowned. He HATED being out of the action, but Sephiroth seemed to take it into thought, but there was another negative.

"What if there's a stronger group of rogues out there? Some groups will be at the far reaches of Gaia and may not be able to come if the other groups need help," he said.

"Good point again," Genesis agreed.

"Well, we need to decide on SOMETHING," Lexi emphasized.

"We're trying to, sis. Man," Genesis huffed.

Lexi gave him an annoyed look. Everyone thought for awhile before Genesis gave out an agitated sigh.

"I don't have anything!" he moaned.

Lexi shook her head at him. He had always tried to over think things.

"What if the strongest groups split up and go to areas where there are strong monsters while the rest stay behind on the mainland?" Shelke asked.

Sephiroth took it into consideration and saw no flaws in her idea.

"Ok. I'm going with Shelke's idea. The strongest groups can split up and head to areas where Blair might find strong monster to train against while the rest can stay and search here," he said.

"Good idea, Seph!" Genesis said.

"Will you keep it down?! Marlene's trying to sleep," Lexi said, whacking her brother on the back of the head.

* * *

With that plan in mind, will they find Blair?

Review and find out.


	5. The search begins

Ch 5

With the plans figured out, the gang splits up to find Blair. What will they encounter in their search?

-------------

The search begins...

At sunset the next morning, everyone was ready to go. Maria was awake earlier than usual and stood beside Marlene to bid them goodbye.

"Um... Sephiroth? I... have something to give you," Maria said, pulling out a silver locket.

He kneeled, took it and opened it. It contained her mom, dad and herself as a three year old in a pretty blue dress.

"That was before... the accident. It brought me luck and now... let it bring you luck, too," she said.

Sephiroth put it around his neck and tucked it inside.

"Thank you, Maria," he said, the two embracing.

As they were ready to set out, Maria and Marlene wanted them to wait for a special gift. Then, the girls began to sing:

_Nanario no kaze ni fukarete _

_Tooi misaki wo mezashiteta_

_Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII_

_Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta_

(Marlene)

_Higashi no sora he to_ (Marlene): _Sora he to _

_Habataku toritachi_

(Maria)

_Saa takarajima nukeru chikamichi_

(Both)

_Nanatsu no umi no rakuen_

_Arashi no yoru no ato ni wa _

_Ai wo tstaeru tame_

_Inochi ga mata umareru_

(Maria)

_Nanatsu no kuni no MERODIA_

(Marlene)

_Daremo ga itsuka wa koko wo _

(Both)

_Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo_

_Watashi wa wasurenai!_

The song ended and the travelers clapped as the two little divas bowed.

"Thank you. We promise we'll be home soon," Lexi said.

"Don't worry, kids. You'll be alright," Genesis said with a confident grin.

The others nodded as they set out. The seven vampires took to the skies while the werewolves went by their beast forms and Rufus took Lexi's motorcycle. The girls shouted their goodbyes while waving furiously.

"Marley? Will they be ok?" Maria asked.

Marlene nodded, smiling.

"Yea... they'll be ok. They have Sephiroth and Vincent and Lexi with them, remember? They'll watch after them," she replied, gripping Maria's hand softly for reassurance.

With the group, land blurred passed them as they parted ways.

Genesis howled out in farewell to his sister as he and Rosso split from the group, heading northeast.

"Good luck, everyone!" Cloud called over his shoulder as he and his lover also parted from the group, heading north.

"Keep him safe, Seph!" Lexi called back before joining her fiancée behind him on her motorcycle.

"Don't get yourselves killed before we meet up again!" Shalua said before following her lover.

"I wish you all luck," Shelke said before catching up with Azul in the air.

With Sephiroth and Cloud...

They arrived at the now abandoned Icicle Village, thanks to the vampire-werewolf war a couple of years ago. Cloud wrapped himself in his wings to keep himself warm as a cold wind softly blew, making Sephiroth's long silver dance in its currents.

"We'll settle here for now," Sephiroth said before heading to the abandoned Icicle Inn with Cloud behind him.

They went inside and Cloud closed the door and locked it. They looked around and found no signs of life.

"Stay alert. There could be some stragglers left from the war," Sephiroth warned.

Cloud nodded before heading to another room. Suddenly, Sephiroth heard him shout his name and was there in a few seconds to see... a dead little girl, her body riddled with deep gashes and a puddle of dry blood around her. Sephiroth grimaced while Cloud looked away. Suddenly, they heard a growl behind them, making them turn around to see a little boy about nine with wild black hair and golden feral eyes glaring dangerously at them.

"So... you've come back to finish your meal, huh bloodsuckers?!" he hissed.

"Wait... what?! You think we killed her? We just arrived here!" Cloud pointed out.

"LIAR!! You killed her!!" the boy shouted, extending his claws.

Sephiroth sighed. No amount of explaining would make this boy listen, so he had no choice. He summoned his mic.

"Seph, no! Don't—"

"I'm not using that song spell. I'm using another... Ankoku no Tsubasa. This will calm him down," Sephiroth quickly cut Cloud off.

Then, he sang:

(Sephiroth)

_BARA yori mo utsukushiku_

_Tsuki yori nayamashiku_

_Taisetu na inochi naraba _

_Kono te de sakasetai_

_Ankoku no sekai tobira ga ima_

_Hirakareru yo mou ichido unmei _

_Azukete umarekawaru sa!_

Cloud, seeing no choice, decided to join in.

(Both)

_Sono mabuta tojite mitsumete_

(Sephiroth)

_Mayonaka no MASUKAREEDO_

(Cloud)

_Ima yami ni suberiochite yuku!_

_Saa oite! Obiennakute ii yo _

(Both)

_Soshite eien ni nare!_

"Hey, what's going on? Why am I... so... tired?" asked the boy tiredly as he fell to his hands and knees, seeing their truth was correct.

"We tried to explain. We didn't kill your sister. She must've been killed before we got here," Cloud said.

"If... you didn't kill her... then, who did?" the boy asked.

Suddenly, they heard rogues outside and the two vampires headed outside to see them feast upon another human female. Smelling the two vampires, they turned their attention to them, bloodlust in their eyes.

"Regular weapons won't work now... we're in their territory," Sephiroth said softly.

"What?!" Cloud gasped.

Sephiroth, however, smirked and reached inside his jacket and pulled out... a silver medium barrel gun with the words 'BLOODY ROSE' engraved on the barrel. At the bottom of the handle was a silver, thin chain that linked to the inside of his jacket.

(AN: guess where I got that from)

As the first rogue leapt for him, he fired a shot, nailing it square in the head. It fell feet short from the silver haired vampire.

"Seph... where did you—"

"Father gave it to me last night. Guess he was right when he said that I'll need this," Sephiroth replied, taking aim at the remaining rogues.

The rogues darted for them and Sephiroth shot at them while they retreated back into the inn. They pressed against the door while Sephiroth locked it. The boy came downstairs, ready to fight with fangs and claws bared. Sephiroth and Cloud stood on either side of him, weapons ready. Soon, they busted in and Sephiroth started firing while Cloud and the boy slashed at them.

Much blood was shed inside and after a ten minute fight, the rogues were dead. Blood was on the floor, on the windows, and even on the ceiling! Sephiroth stood in the midst of the chaos, mostly covered in the beasts' blood. Cloud and the boy were panting from the fight.

"Seph...? You ok?" Cloud asked uncertainly, noticing the General hadn't moved.

The silver haired vampire slowly turned to reveal... his blood eyes! His blood rage had taken over! But, he didn't go crazy and started killing, no. He gazed intently at Cloud before any of them could blink, he was near his lover, inches from his face. Cloud blushed red before the General yanked him close, kissing him hungrily. Cloud, not wanting to anger him, wrapped his arms around him, deepening it. Then, Cloud whispered

"Let's take this upstairs."

The beast grinned. Scooping up the blonde vampire, he flew upstairs, slamming the bedroom door and tossed Cloud onto the bed. He was soon on top of him, kissing him again. Cloud matched it with just as much lust as his lover while taking Sephiroth's blood stained coat and shirt off, revealing his toned chest.

"That's... perfection," he whispered, lust laced in his voice.

The beast growled softly in delight and proceeded to rip off Cloud's shirt before kissing and nipping at it, earning a moan from the blonde. Cloud's claws ghosted down Sephiroth's back, earning a hiss of delight. Sephiroth licked near Cloud's jugular, speeding up his heartbeat at the feel of his tongue. His fangs brushed near the wet spot, ready to bite down.

Cloud exposed his neck and the General bit down and Cloud gasped and gripped the sheets. A few seconds of pain, then... all was ecstasy, pleasure and bliss mixed into one. Cloud smirked through the feelings and bit him in return. Sephiroth detached from him, letting out a half roar, half moan. The blonde proceeded to take off the other's pants, kissing him in the meanwhile with bloody lips. The beast took off Cloud's pants, returning the kiss, grazing his fangs over his bottom lip and heard Cloud gasp in surprise.

Their tongues started doing a frantic dance of their own, battling for dominance. Sephiroth won by nipping at Cloud's tongue, making it retract and allowing him to explore the inside. Then... the dreaded sound of Cloud's cell phone cut through the silence, making him groan in disdain. Sephiroth snapped out of his blood rage at the sound.

"Cloud...? Wha—"

"It's ok, Seph. No one got hurt... except a few rogues. Let me answer my cell real fast," Cloud replied to Sephiroth's unfinished question while reaching for his cell.

He flipped it open and put it on speaker.

"Hello?"

_Cloud, it's Lexi. How are things at Icicle Village? Anything?_

"We found a little boy... who turned out to be a werewolf fledgling. We had some problems with some rogues. Other than that, everything's clear over here. We're going to stay here for a few days in case we see any sign of Blair," Sephiroth said.

_Well... alright. We just wanted to check on you two. Don't get yourselves hurt._

"Yes, mom," Sephiroth replied sarcastically before pressing END.

"Now... where were we?" he added with a playful hiss.

"... At this part," Cloud replied, catching onto his tone before kissing him again, wrapping his arms around his neck.

All through the night, Sephiroth and Cloud made love to each other while the boy stayed awake, watching the outside in case any more rogues were around. He knew there was something between those two and he was right. So, he gave them their space. The next morning, Sephiroth awoke and found each other in the other's arms. He smiled softly and brushed a stray lock of Cloud's hair out of the blonde's face, revealing his slight alabaster face and blood-stained lips.

By the gods of the underworld, he looked beautiful to him. Cloud moaned as the sunlight hit his closed eyes. He slowly opened them to see his lover staring at him with a warm smile on his face. He kissed him and Sephiroth licked the blood from his lips, savoring the taste.

"Morning, my tainted angel," Sephiroth whispered.

"Morning, Seph," Cloud replied, snuggling into his chest.

After waking up, they got dressed into new clothes and headed downstairs for breakfast. They saw the boy sleeping soundly on one of the couches in his wolf form. Sephiroth took his coat and placed it over him, giving him an extra layer. They got outside, which was now snowing moderately, coats on.

"I almost forgot what snow looked like," Cloud said, staring up at the gray skies.

Sephiroth nodded in understanding.

"But... it's weird." Sephiroth raised an eyebrow in question. "... All I can see... is red snow," Cloud added, outstretching a hand to catch a white snowflake, which melted at his touch.

"Red... snow? You see it, too?" Sephiroth asked.

"Why do I see things in blood?" Cloud questioned.

Sephiroth looked up at the skies. He, too, can the world painted red and gray. The only normal thing he can see is Cloud. The rest... well...

"For some time, I thought I was going mad. Every day when it rained or snowed, all I saw were either red drops or red snowflakes. Turns out to be a side effect to the vampirism. The things you saw normally... are now colored in blood's red dye... that what a vampire sees every day. Nothing can change it," he explained.

Cloud sighed.

"Is... there a cure?" he asked uncertainly.

Sephiroth shook his head no.

"I'm afraid not. Whoever created vampirism made sure there was no way that it could be reversed. Zack and I searched for a cure, but after five years of searching... we've found nothing. I'm sorry to say that, but it's the truth we must live with from now on," he said sadly.

"So... no cure, huh?" Cloud said.

"I'm afraid not, Cloud. If there was, it would be too late right now. The vampirism is already merged with your DNA. Inject the cure now... and you'd die not even after a minute it's been inside," Sephiroth said gravely.

Cloud hugged himself, shivering at the thought. Sephiroth saw this and wrapped his arms around him.

"Rest assured... I won't let anything happen to you while I'm still alive. I'll protect you with my life," he vowed.

Cloud held him tightly, eyes shut in content.

"I know, Seph. And I'll watch your back, too," he said.

They looked at each other before Sephiroth leaned in, capturing his lips once more.

* * *

Sorry I took so long to update! Getting good, right?

I wanted to add another Seph/Cloud moment in there for some fluff to lighten up the mood. Review if you want me to continue! 


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